The waterfalls in Letchworth State Park are popular among visitors. / JEFFREY BLACKWELL/Staff file photo

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HAMLING BEACH STATE PARKThe popular park located on Lake Ontario just west of Rochester has 264 tent and trailer campsites. The adjacent Yanty Creek Marsh offers a mile-long, self-guided nature trail, and there are 10 more miles of hiking, biking, snowshoe and cross-country skiing trails. LOCATING CAMPGROUNDSFor information on DEC-operated campgrounds in the Adirondacks and Catskills forest preserves, call (800) 456-2267 or go to www.dec.ny.gov. For state campgrounds, call the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, (518) 474-0456. For reservations, go to ReserveAmerica.com; for details, go to nysparks.com. For places to camp at hundreds of private sites, call (800) 497-2669 or go tonycampgrounds.com.

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When it comes to camping, there are hundreds of options within a short drive of Rochester.

With 178 state parks and 35 historic sites, New York’s park system is among the largest and oldest in America. The Finger Lakes Region, featuring 11 parks, and the Genesee region, with four, draw more than 4 million visitors annually.

All told, there are nearly 8,500 individual state-operated campsites and thousands more at some 200 privately operated campgrounds.

Thanks to advances in technology, finding a place to pitch a tent or park an RV these days is as easy as hitting an app on a hand-held device. Both the New York state parks system and Campground Owners of New York (CONY) launched free, mobile applications within the last year.

“More and more I find myself and people I know using our phones to find information and make transactions,” said CONY CEO and President Don Bennett Jr. of Pittsford, whose family owns Conesus Lake Campground. “It makes sense that (we’d) format New York camping data to find that trend in application use to connect with the public.”

Users of these apps can access driving directions, phone numbers, websites, amenities and make reservations.

It’s important to check ahead when staying at state campgrounds since budget cuts in recent years have reduced some services. At the same time, private campgrounds are adding amenities.

In response to the sagging economy and rising gas costs, camping is booming nationwide as families look for more affordable vacation options. In the Rochester region, getaways to sandy beaches, rugged hiking trails, stunning vistas and campgrounds offering a resort experience can be found less than an hour’s drive from downtown.

Camping has long been a gateway to other outdoor activities such as hiking, boating and swimming, and families have bonded around campfires for generations.

“A campground is still a unique entity,” Bennett said. “It’s a natural social medium where people talk to each other while still getting away and into the outdoors while also enjoying all the amenities parks have to offer.”

Camping isn’t just for those who like to rough it in a tent in the wilderness anymore. Many campgrounds now offer other lodging options, from cozy cabins to 400-square-foot park model units with all the comforts of home.

And in response to demand, more campgrounds are becoming resort-like with heated in-ground pools, fitness clubs, yoga and dance classes, massage services and free WiFi.

One of the best places to camp in the entire country is just a 35-mile drive south of Rochester to Letchworth State Park. Voted one of the USA’s Top 100 family campgrounds by ReserveAmerica, Letchworth is nestled on 14,000 acres along the Genesee River.

The park, nearly 18 miles long, is nicknamed “The Grand Canyon of the East” because the river flows nearly 600 feet below in many parts of the park, offering breathtaking views. There are 66 miles of hiking trails, and additional trails for horseback riding, biking, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing.